


(like) a lifetime

by tourmalinex



Category: Free!
Genre: Domestic Fluff, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Jealous Nanase Haruka, Love Confessions, M/M, Matsuoka Rin & Nanase Haruka Friendship, Nanase Haruka Birthday Exchange 2020, POV Nanase Haruka
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:35:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25080982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tourmalinex/pseuds/tourmalinex
Summary: All he wanted to do was drop off Makoto’s umbrella at his part-time job and maybe have lunch together on his break.Or, Haruka figures out his feelings and realizes what was there all along.
Relationships: Matsuoka Rin & Nanase Haruka, Nanase Haruka & Tachibana Makoto, Nanase Haruka/Tachibana Makoto
Comments: 15
Kudos: 160
Collections: Nanase Haruka Birthday Exchange 2020





	(like) a lifetime

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is for @justjimei on tumblr for the Nanase Haruka Birthday Exchange. It's been a hot minute since I wrote makoharu, so I hope this was okay and that you enjoy it!
> 
> Title comes from the song Rolling Waves by The Naked and Famous

Early afternoon rain arrived in Tokyo, drenching the streets and its people.

Thankfully, Haruka had brought in the laundry before the first droplet hit the rooftop of his and Makoto’s apartment. They had been living together for the past year, realizing how much easier it would be to save on money, especially with their expanding expenses now that they grew into adulthood. 

“I don’t know why we didn’t think of this to begin with,” Makoto said, after unpacking the last of his boxes. Haruka’s apartment had the more spacious bathtub, so of course Makoto moved into his apartment.

But Haruka was well aware of the reason why they hadn’t lived together once they set foot for Tokyo. All of this was so new and foreign. Well, mostly for Makoto. He never lived on his own before while Haruka spent most of his high school life by himself with the Tachibana’s checking in on him. He was used to it. And now, he had to get used to living with Makoto full-time. There were no surprises, given that they’d known each other nearly their whole lives. And somehow, Haruka fell into doing most of the housework, not that he minded it. Again, he was used to this and maybe a smile would find its way onto Haruka’s face when Makoto enjoyed the food he made.

However, today was different.

Haruka peeled off his wet clothes and sunk into a hot bath, sucking in a deep breath before completely submerging himself. He needed to get a grip on himself and as always, turned to water for answers. 

All he wanted to do was drop off Makoto’s umbrella at his part-time job and maybe have lunch together on his break. Lucky for Makoto, Haruka didn’t have much planned for today. They had some leftover tonkatsu from last night’s dinner, so all Haruka did was cook rice, blanched some vegetables and added fruit to balance it out.

The trek over to the swimming pool wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great, either. He anticipated for the station to be crowded due to the rain, but there were still more people than he would have liked. Haruka clutched onto the handrail, keeping as still as possible before getting off at his stop. 

Makoto loved his job. Haruka saw that so clearly back in Iwatobi and it was more evident now, with Makoto taking classes on the best ways to teach. It was nice, watching someone he’d known for so long grow into the person they wanted to be. Haruka shook his head at the thought, finding it a little too sentimental. Maybe Rin’s tendencies were finally rubbing off on him.

Once he got to the swimming pool, Haruka shook his umbrella and left it in a rack by the doorway. There was a young woman at the front desk, staring towards the pool. He peered over as well, cheeks growing warm as he saw Makoto at work, helping one of the kids float on their back. 

“O-Oh! I’m sorry!” The young woman waved over at Haruka, flustered. “Can I help you?”

As he approached the counter, he opened his bag, pulling out Makoto’s umbrella. “Yes. Makoto left his umbrella.” He placed it on the counter and before he could get out the bento, he noticed the young woman staring at him.

“Oh, are you Haru by any chance,” she asked. 

He thought it was rather weird, but nodded, much to the young woman’s relief.

“Ah, okay. You’re Makoto-kun’s roommate, right?”

_ Roommate, huh. _

That word hurt more than it had any right to. Haruka bit his tongue, shoving the bitter taste that built in his mouth down his throat.

“Hey, can I ask you a question?”

It took a lot of his energy to not roll his eyes, but he nodded anyways. The woman looked slightly bashful, cheeks tinted pink. 

“Do you know if he’s dating anyone?”

_ What business is it of yours? _

“No, he isn’t.”

“Then it’s okay for me to like him,” she asked herself quietly, but still loud enough for Haruka to hear. He shrugged, hands falling to his sides and tightening into fists.

“Do whatever you want,” he said, no longer feeling hungry. He pulled out one of the bentos, leaving it with her as well, then left, not even bothering to see if Makoto noticed his presence. Once he managed to open his umbrella, Haruka wandered back into the Tokyo streets, heading towards the train station.

She was pretty, he supposed, by all traditional standards. Her voice was clear and didn’t grate on his ears and she had a kind smile. Would Makoto like that? Maybe. They didn’t really talk about girls since they were so focused on their club. And then during their first year of high school, after seeing that they didn’t have a swim club, Haruka spent a lot of afternoons skipping class with Makoto following behind him. He could’ve asked a girl out then. It wasn’t as if Makoto  _ didn’t _ have girls looking his way. Maybe it was about time Makoto explored that side of adulthood.

And Haruka didn’t like that one bit.

He rose from the depths of the tub, swallowing air and wiping his face. When the water lost its heat, Haruka got out of the tub and dried off, still feeling a tightness in his stomach. He wanted to get out of his head, but was at a loss of what to do. He didn’t really want to watch tv, and most of the chores were done. After putting on some clothes, he checked his phone and saw that he had a few messages. One was from Makoto.

**Makoto Tachibana**

> Ah, sorry I missed you, Haru!  
>  Thank you for lunch and the umbrella!

Haruka exhaled through his nose, typing a simple reply of “no problem.” Apparently Rin had also messaged him, although that was two days ago, not that it seemed like it was a pressing matter. It wasn’t even that interesting. All Rin did was send a picture of him and Sousuke at the beach in Australia. And there was nothing wrong with that. He knew Sousuke was protective of Rin and Rin had grown to love Sousuke and they were happy.

But that didn’t stop the picture from pissing him off. 

He sighed, typed a response and hit send.

> Hey Rin. You guys look like you had fun.

Haruka figured Rin must have been taking a break from practice, because he replied instantly.

**Rin Matsuoka**

> Oi, Haru!  
>  Yeah, we had lots of fun. It was a bit sad to see Sousuke go back home

A small snicker slipped past his lips. 

> Bet you cried.

**Rin Matsuoka**

> Of course I did! He’s my boyfriend!

Boyfriend.

That was a nice word, he thinks.

_ Oh. _

So that’s what this was. The tightness in his chest, the longing that took root without notice.

This was love.

And he was  _ jealous _ .

Haruka’s fingers trembled as he typed another message. Rin was the most romantic person he knew. 

> Can I ask you a question?

**Rin Matsuoka**

> Sure. What’s up?

> When did you realize you liked Sousuke?

**Rin Matsuoka**

> Ha? That’s a weird thing to ask  
>  I don’t know, it just happened  
>  Why?

> It’s nothing, really  
>  I just… I think I like Makoto?

Haruka was surprised at the incoming call from Rin and didn’t feel like doing this here and now, but knew Rin wouldn’t let up. He answered the call, doing his best—and failing—to mentally prepare himself. 

“What do you mean, ‘you  _ think _ ’,” Rin crowed, making Haruka pull the phone away from his ear. “You mean to tell me that you haven’t been  _ together _ ?”

“Don’t you think we would have said something by now?”

“Haru, we all know you’re a private person. We’ve just been waiting for you guys to tell us.”

“ _ We _ ?”

“Yes,  _ we _ ! Me, Sousuke, my sister, Nagisa, Rei—we’ve just been waiting!”

“Sorry to disappoint,” he deadpanned. “I’m just finding all of this out now.”

“So what finally tipped you off?”

Haruka bit his lower lip. He didn't want to admit that there was such an ugly feeling growing inside of him. It started off as a small tremor, but what happens when the earth shakes underneath him, cracking open just for him to fall through?

“If… if there was someone at Sousuke's job… a girl…” He ran his fingers through his hair and cleared his throat. “And she said she  _ likes  _ him, how would that make you feel?”

“I'd be jealous,” Rin said. His answer was so automatic that it caught Haruka off guard. 

“I love him, and I know he loves me, but it doesn't stop the feeling. It's going away faster, though.”

He tugged at his bangs, twirling the hair around his finger. “How long did that take? For the jealousy to go away.”

“I'm still working on it, Haru. Look, I think you should tell Makoto about how you feel.”

“And if he doesn't feel the same?”

“Haru, I'm gonna level with you. Makoto is definitely in love with you. He looks at you like you're the only person that matters. I'm not gonna make you, but I'm just saying you should.”

But he still wasn’t sure. If it all went wrong, he’d lose his best friend forever.

“Can I call you after?”

“Duh. What are friends for? Talk to you later.”

Rin hung up, so he put his phone back in his pocket. Haruka rummaged through their pantry and checked the fridge, thinking about what he could make. If he was going to tell Makoto how he felt, he wanted dinner to be special, to be Makoto's favorite.

_ Hm. Green curry. _

If they were back in Iwatobi, he would've had a harder time finding all the ingredients. But now that they were in Tokyo, it wouldn’t be too hard to get everything.

* * *

The day wore Makoto down to the bone. No doubt, he loved his job but sometimes dealing with kids was tiring. As he walked towards the apartment door, each footstep heavier than the last, and reached for his keys, he smelled something familiar. There was a toasted spiciness to it along with a hint of sweetness, and he hadn’t realized how hungry he was until now. He stuck the key in and quickly turned the knob, excited to discover that the delicious scent was coming from their apartment. 

“Haru, I’m home,” he called as he took off his shoes.

“Welcome back.”

There was an assortment of kitchen noises. Knife slicing through, hitting the wooden cutting board repeatedly and the bubbling pot. He made it over to the kitchen, eyes beaming at Haruka.

“What are you making,” Makoto asked, leaning against Haruka. The shorter man elbowed him, asking in his own way to let him finish up, but Makoto laughed, knowing that Haruka didn’t mean any harm by it.

“Go take a bath,” he said, concentrating on a bell pepper. “Dinner should be ready by the time you get out.”

“Okay. I won’t take too long.”

After Makoto disappeared into the bathroom, Haruka took a few deep breaths. 

_ Focus _ , he told himself.

The rice cooker beeped, leaving the curry to be the only thing that needed to be finished. As soon as he opened the rice cooker, he was greeted with white steam, and he was careful in not letting it blow into his face. With a paddle, he fluffed up the rice and changed the setting to keep warm. Dinner wouldn’t take that much longer, with the vegetables needing just to soften. As he let the curry simmer, he set the table carefully and brought out the pitcher of iced tea, placing it off to the side. Once everything was on the table, Haruka sat down, waiting. He debated over whether or not to text Rin but ultimately decided he needed the moral support.

> I’m doing it. I’m gonna tell him now.

Before he could say more, Haruka nearly dropped his phone at hearing the bathroom door open and shut. Makoto walked out looking relaxed, hair still wet from the bath. As he approached the dinner table, his eyes widened in surprise.

“Haru, is this—” 

“—you said before you like green curry, so I tried making it.”

“Haru… thank you.” Damn it, why was Makoto’s smile everything? Haruka simply nodded as Makoto sat across from him. “Was it hard to make?”

“Not really,” he lied, thankful that Makoto didn’t press any further. 

“Thanks for the food.”

Haruka watched as Makoto took a heaping spoonful of curry and rice, waiting with bated breath. His hands rested on his lap, balling into fists. Makoto took a few moments, savoring the flavor before gulping it down.

“Haru, this is delicious!” 

He wanted to stay calm with the illusion of composure, but his wavering voice betrayed him.

“R-Really?”

“Mhmm.” Makoto’s answer was muffled from another heaping bite.

The rest of dinner went by with light conversation, Makoto filling Haruka in on his day at work. He mostly listened, but his hammering heart drowned out some details. After a few bites, he deemed the curry to be good, but could use some work. Maybe Makoto was just being nice. Either way, Haruka was happy when Makoto helped himself to seconds. 

It took them a while before they decided to clean up once they were done eating, washing the dishes in comfortable silence. For them, this was so natural that Haruka couldn’t think of living differently. He could live with Makoto, like this, forever. But as his mind wandered, one of the bowls nearly slipped out of hand. He managed to catch it on time, but Makoto looked concerned. 

“Is everything okay?” Makoto tilted his head intently, worry in his eyes. 

Haruka dried his hands on a towel, wringing it in his hands so tightly, his knuckles were on the verge of turning white.

“Makoto, there’s something I need to tell you.”

Haruka was struggling with the right words. He wasn’t known for his tact and his bluntness often made situations worse.

“You know you can tell me anything, right?” 

He nodded. Why did Makoto have to be so kind and considerate? As much as he loved that about Makoto, Haruka’s nerves were becoming frazzled. 

“Makoto… I…” Haruka looked down, cheeks aflame. “I love you,” he murmured. He could hear Makoto’s breath catch, and he feared the worst. Why wasn’t he saying anything? Was this all just a huge mistake? When he felt brave enough to peer up, his heart skipped a beat. Makoto’s eyes were brimming with tears, still clinging onto his eyelashes.

“Do you… do you mean it?”

_ What? _

“I wouldn’t joke about something like this.” “I love you.”

“I’ve loved you for so long…  _ Haruka _ .”

Hearing his own name, those three syllables, sent chills down his spine and his heart went into overdrive, thrumming away. What was the right thing to do in a situation like this? They were stuck, staring at each other, drinking each other in while at a loss of what more they could say. But this wasn’t the time to wait for the other to act. Haruka grabbed Makoto by the collar of his shirt and pulled him down as he shifted forward on his toes, pressing their lips together. The kiss itself was chaste, experimental, as if to see if this was real, if this was meant to be. But as they grew comfortable with each other in this new light, hands roamed and their kisses grew heated. This was perfect, and this was what they wanted all along. 

As he pulled away, Haruka’s face was burning from ear to ear. But he couldn’t help from breaking into a soft smile, which Makoto returned. He gathered Haruka into his arms, holding him close.

“I’m so happy,” he whispered into Haruka’s hair.

“Makoto?”

His best friend gulped. “Yeah, Haru?”

“You can sleep in my room with me.”

Makoto’s face was red, all the way down to his neck and nodded, taking Haruka’s hand in his and retreating back into what would end up being not just Haruka’s bedroom, but  _ theirs _ .

They would have more days like this. They would have a lifetime together.

**Author's Note:**

> **BONUS;**
> 
> **Rin Matsuoka**
>
>> HARU  
> WHAT DO YOU MEAN NOW?  
> ARE YOU OKAY  
> DID YOU TELL HIM ALREADY  
> YOU SAID YOU WOULD CALL  
> OI HARU
> 
> **Nagisa Hazuki**
>
>>   
> Haru-chan why is Rin freaking out?
> 
> **Rei Ryugazaki**
>
>>   
> Haruka-senpai is everything okay? 
> 
> * * *
> 
> As always comments and kudos make my day! Happy birthday to our saba boy!
> 
> See you next water time!


End file.
